Game review: Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move' another 3DS eShop gem

Nintendo’s 3DS eShop is home to an ever-growing list of excellent titles for those on a budget, like the addictive Pushmo and Crashmo puzzle games. Now you can add the recently released “Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move” to it.

“Minis on the Move” (MotM) is the next title in the popular Mario vs. Donkey Kong series, although it ditches the versus element this time around. Borrowing from elements from “Pipe Mania” but with a Nintendo twist, players have to direct charming wind-up toys to the goal by placing tiles on a square grid to make a path, which is easier said than done due to numerous obstacles including spike pits, Shy Guys and the possibility of even having your toys walk off the playfield.

MotM is separated into several Main Game modes to keep things fresh. Mario’s Main Event plays like Tetris, where randomized tiles fill up a pipe and have to be dragged onto open areas on the grid with the stylus. The early tutorial stages aren’t difficult, but the more you progress the harder they get, especially when trying to collect the three “M” tokens to perfect each stage. As the game tosses in more obstacles and environment-changing elements, like bombs to blow up placed tiles, this mode becomes hectic in a hurry since you’re on a time limit to finish a stage and you can’t let the pipe overflow, or else it’s game over.

Puzzle Palace is a much more relaxing mode, giving you a specific number of tiles and unlimited time to think about where to place them. But the craziness continues in Many Mini Mayhem, where you shift and rotate tiles to make sure multiple toys reach the finish. Losing just one requires a restart, which becomes a nice challenge in later stages.

Advertisement

Last but not least is Giant Jungle, the most challenging of them all. There are only a few stages, but each one is on a much bigger playfield than the others. Using randomized tiles, you have to guide your toy to the goal, collecting stars and crucial time extenders to keep play going. Like in Mario’s Main Event, the randomized tile selection can make or break your game.

Several sets of mini-games also come with the package, even though they feel tacked on and unnecessary. Mini Target Smash has you flinging Mini Marios at targets, Fly Guy Grab lets you nab the flying enemies and reel them in, and Elevation Station has you awkwardly controlling a platform with the stylus while dodging enemies and collecting coins. The coolest one is Cube Crash, where you destroy a 3D cube by flinging Mini Marios at it, but it wears out its welcome too quickly.

Once you’re done solving the whopping 180-plus stages MotM has to offer, you don’t have to worry about running out of content. A level creator offers up endless replayability as you can share your creations online and play and save what others have made. Searching through the top weekly and popular categories is the best way to take on some very creative levels involving lots of conveyor belts and bouncing around.

For a grid-based puzzle game that relies heavily on the touchscreen, I found the controls very responsive -- even during the more hectic times. The visuals along the top screen are nice, but with one problem: I hardly looked at it. All my attention was on the bottom screen, managing paths and making sure the pipe wasn’t overflowing with tiles. The only time to really look above is when you solve the puzzle and the game automatically walks you to the goal with its victory music. Sadly, the visuals feel kind of wasted.

Nintendo could have released “Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move” at retail for a higher price. But due to the rise of smartphone and tablet gaming over the years, they’ve had to adapt to the pricing structure changes. It only costs $9.99, which is practically a steal for what it has to offer.

3 1/2 stars out of 4

A downloadable code for “Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move” was provided by Nintendo for this review.